The Obama Administration, NSA Scandal And Free Press In The United States

The National Security Agency snooping scandal has helped to bring into light some of the ugliest facets of the U.S. administration including the suppressing of the “free” press.

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The National Security Agency snooping scandal has helped to bring into light some of the ugliest facets of the U.S. administration including the suppressing of the “free” press.

To shed some more light on this issue we can take some help from an American journalist and author Chris Hedges, who while referring to the NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden, said, “If there are no Snowdens, if there are no Mannings, if there are no Assanges, there will be no free press.”

Also, Glenn Greenwald, who probably played the role of both Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein in the NSA scandal, has written about the ‘inevitable side-effects’ of ‘challenging the U.S. government,’ explaining how taking on the NSA affected his personal and professional life.

The Guardian journalist’s account of his life after publishing the information supplied by Edward Snowden explains how cruel the U.S. government can be to the press and how the media is no more ‘free’ in the United States now.

China, Russia and the Middle East countries have long been criticized for their authoritarian control on the press by former and present U.S. administrations. In fact, even after the high-profile exposé of the NSA ‘spying’ program PRISM and Boundless Informant, Obama administration officials, such as John Kerry were bold enough to criticize Russia and China for their internet and media freedom. Kerry should really ask Greenwald and the Associated Press reporters for their opinion on press freedom in the United States of America. Then he would certainly feel ashamed of his statement.

There is no doubt about the fact that the Obama administration is under severe pressure ever since the initial news reports were released exposing the NSA spying program. But by suppressing investigative journalism in the country, the U.S. government is only creating more questions and distrust.

Snowden is already struggling in Russia for help and that moment is not far when Putin would mock John Kerry and ask him, “What happened to free press in the United States Of America?”